4 Free Proxies To Block Ads in Google Chrome (or any browser)

Filed under: Internet, Utilities, Google, Freeware, Browsers

4 Free Proxies To Block Ads in Google Chrome (or any browser)

by Lee Mathews Sep 8th 2008

So you've tested Google Chrome and decided that you like it. You say you'd switch, but there's no adblocker? Fortunately for you, there are several free, tiny filtering proxy applications available that can do the job.

The best part is, they'll help block ads in any browser - including Chrome.

Before I get into a list, it's important to know that several of these apps haven't been updated in ages. However, content filtering is a pretty straightforward operation, so even the old ones work just fine - and you can always tweak the blocking rules yourself.

CyberGuard WebWasher Classic is another great option. It's small, fast, and very customizable. It's got additional capabilities to block popups, scripts, referrers, cookies, and prefixes. New filters are incredibly easy to set up, and there's no noticeable lag in load times. Of the apps I tested, WebWasher was my favorite.

Proxomitron has a god awful GUI, but it works well enough that its appearance can be overlooked (you can create your own bitmaps if you really hate it). It offers extremely flexible bloxing rules, and the default set is extrmely effective. Blocked ads are replaced with [red text in brackets], and pages load times weren't adversely affected.

iReject Trash is a tiny download (200k) and works extremely well. Its log view also gives you an interesting insight into the pages you're visiting. CNET.com, for example, had 33 items blocked. Out-of-the-box the blocking was very good, and the rules are fully customizable. You can block by host, pattern, or image dimensions. Page load times were a bit slower on certain sites.

Lifehacker suggests Privoxy as an option (via GeekZone NZ). Privoxy is more low-fi: all your configuration tweaks are done by editing text files. It is, however, very easy on processor usage and it also does a very good job with no tweaking. I didn't notice any difference in page load times with Privoxy.

There are tons of other options for blocking ads (just check the Google Directory), so don't give up on Chrome just because there's no AdBlock. Grab one of these apps, and give it another try - then tell us how it went!

Tags: adblock, google-chrome, privacy, proxy

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Troy said 12:34PM on 9-08-2008

I use Privoxy to block ads for all my browsers. Its easy, small, and does a great job. I also use OpenDNS to block undesirable websites.

http://www.privoxy.org
http://www.opendns.com

Gulagosphere said 7:31AM on 10-18-2008

Forget that. The Iron Fork of Chromium now has built-in adblocking!

James said 12:37PM on 9-08-2008

Which of the above are best for collaborative block lists? I used to use Proxomitron before FF because popular, and now I use ABP on FireFox explicitly because the "EasyList" works so well -- I practically never have to add a filter of my own. I'm not going to switch to Chrome until the block process is at least that easy (and works at least that well).

Paul Nicholson said 2:18PM on 9-08-2008

Amen. Until Google Chrome supports ABP or similar, i'm not even going to bother.

Mavromatis said 12:39PM on 9-08-2008

Users of TOR can use this small script to turn tor on off without editing configuration file, just put them under privoxy folder and use tor.bat to turn tor on or off. Remember to restart privoxy after turning it on or off.
http://www.rapidspread.com/file.jsp?id=lekbnbhz55

votetheday.com said 2:44PM on 9-08-2008

It's bugged, and it's bugged a lot. It's almost official - http://www.votetheday.com/polls/googles-chrome-173/
I'm disappointed in Google - yeah, it's beta, but remember, how Gmail beta looked like... Looks like guys had to deliver it till deadline (10th birthday, maybe), and they were obviously short of time...
It's better than IE, but FF will live excellently long until Google fixes everything and makes enough plug-inns and versions for Mac/Linux...

kojo87 said 7:50AM on 9-09-2008

im waiting for a Linux version to run on my EeePC 701 because Firefox is kinda hard on the little guy. i though Google would be better about getting non-Windows versions available. i like the idea of Chrome but it doesnt seem as fleshed out as Firefox or even IE. maybe its the lack of add-ons. maybe its the lack of a friggin homepage! or is there a way to set one and im just daft?

Nick said 3:59PM on 9-08-2008

Tried Privoxy. "...does a very good job with no tweaking" didn't prove true for me, fired up Chrome and tried 4 different sites, almost all the ads on all 4 sites came up. I went back to FF and gave it a big hug.

Lee Mathews said 5:37PM on 9-08-2008

That one's a winner...I included it in my roundup: http://www.downloadsquad.com/2008/07/18/lesser-know-weapons-to-trick-out-your-malware-arsenal/

Fred Thompson said 10:57PM on 9-08-2008

Don't forget the Hosts file as a simple system-wide blocker. A popular, frequently updated one is at http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.htm
If you like the "deal" sites, you'll want to remove the entries for the click-thru referevnces or convert them to comments.

Sir Loin said 6:53PM on 9-08-2008

Agreed, I've been using that for years and it's awesome.

donely said 7:45AM on 9-10-2008

I can't believe Ad Muncher hasn't been mentioned in the article, it's the most complete ad-blocking program out there, and "just works", that I have tried!

Get it at www.admuncher.com - it does, however, cost $30, but it's well worth it. I hate working on other computers without ad-blocking (just try visiting digg.com without using ad-blocking :X)

Please remember that currently you have to manual at "chrome" to the filtering target (this will likely be corrected in the next version". But it works like a charm

Digitalking said 7:59AM on 9-16-2008

Yep. Ad Muncher all the way. Greatest ad blocking program ever. Supports all browsers, chat programs, etc. Been around for years, and the ad blocking lists are still updated at least weekly.

Upekshapriya said 1:02PM on 9-28-2008

I'm surprised you haven't mentioned BFilter - I've found BFilter proxy http://bfilter.sourceforge.net/ extremely straightforward and effective in stopping ads on Chrome and it's much more user-friendly and straightforward to set up than Privoxy Proxomitron. Apparently you can also add more filters to it very much like AdblockPlus.

Dap said 8:16PM on 10-16-2008

I have tried all of the tools listed. Admuncher is good and I currently use it but maybe it wasn't listed because it isn't free. I never even heard of Bfilter before reading this but I am currently testing it. Thanks for the recommendation Upekshapriya . Internet Junkbuster Proxy, Guidescope, and Naviscope are three other free filtering tools that should have been mentioned as well.

Gulagosphere said 7:38AM on 10-18-2008

Privacy-strong Iron Fork of Chromium with built-in adblocking

http://srware.net/en/software_srware_iron_news.php

not subscription based.. yet? And needs element blocking and context menu or interface widget.

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